Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale 2013 – Auction Report

Every year Barrett-Jackson’s WestWorld show changes. It is the one predictable element in the strategy of Craig Jackson, Steven Davis, Gary Bennett and Phil Neri.

Maybe the most surprising change in 2013 was the re-appearance of Chrysler’s SRT brand. Last seen at WestWorld years ago, Mopar was supplanted by Ford Motor Company. Then General Motors bought into the WestWorld experience with a presence that has steadily increased – although Ford remains the Big Dog at the main entrance. Mopar moved over to Russo and Steele for a few years, then its presence evaporated entirely, only to bubble back up as a second level Barrett-Jackson sponsor this year.

It’s no small accomplishment that Barrett-Jackson can attract and hold all three major US auto manufacturers as sponsors, two of them with major footprints, at the same event, and ample evidence of the commercial success of a Barrett-Jackson WestWorld presence.

In the auction tent it was the burgeoning presence of the Salon Collection that created buzz. Started last year, the Salon features classics and high end sports, muscle and pony cars, re-establishing some of the high end excitement that marked Barrett-Jackson long ago but had been subsumed by the intense focus on middle market and low end collector car that were accessible to Barrett-Jackson’s vast SPEED TV audience.

Barrett-Jackson gives the Salon cars feature placement online, in the event program, with prime placement at the front of the main preview tent and by accepting reserves on a few Salon consignments.

Far more important, however, Barrett-Jackson puts them in the coveted Saturday ‘Prime Time’ slot beginning at 5PM, The firmly established time and place for the auction’s premier consignments means consignors no longer have to sweat over ‘Prime Time’ lot numbers that slip into late evening – or early nighttime. Bidders, who may be tracking cars at other auctions, know when to be in the Barrett-Jackson Big Top. And, never to be overlooked, the producers at SPEED TV can build anticipation for the Salon Collection and deliver it to viewers in a fixed time slot.

Does it work? Oh, yeah.

Nine of the Salon Collection cars brought successful hammer bids of $1 million or more. They sold for an aggregate of $17,545,000, 16.8% of the new record total sale at Barrett-Jackson of $104,726,490. The Salon Collection’s contribution coupled with a strong consignment of high end cars in the auction’s normal docket and contributed to the seeming dichotomy of the median sale declining to $44,000 (from $48,400 last year) but the average jumping to $80,066, up 14.6% from 2012’s $69,871.

In other words, the 2013 Barrett-Jackson consignment was much stronger among upper middle market cars, or, in the alternative, bidders were flush with cash and willing to spend it on higher quality cars.

Barrett-Jackson has consistently innovated with new concepts. Craig Jackson and his team have been unafraid to tinkering with a good (a very good) thing in the interest of generating more excitement, more interest and in the final analysis more money. That’s an important part of the reason some 300,000 spectators walked through the WestWorld gates paying up to $55 for an adult day ticket (on Saturday.)

A lot of them came to see the Batmobile, too, and weren’t disappointed when it sold on Saturday evening for a mind-bending $4,620,000.

There’s always something new at Barrett-Jackson WestWorld, including a new venue replacing the Orange County Fairgrounds location with a sale in Reno during Hot August Nights. Combine that with a jaunt out onto the Bonneville salt flats and Monterey and the August schedule becomes as fraught as January.

Lot # 99 2009 Dodge Regent Speed Energy NASCAR Replica 2-Dr. Sedan; S/N A5GBHU2WA91400010; Black/Black cloth; Original, with non-original appearance items, 3+ condition; Hammered Sold at $32,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $35,200. No Reserve – 295/20R20 tires and chrome wheels, two seats, roll cage, no carpet, V-8 crate engine, 4-wheel disc brakes, 4-speed. – Lowered, reskinned, no doors. Decent paint. Clean and presentable but not fresh. A Dodge show car built for active demonstrations in NASCAR Car of Tomorrow configuration. Not emissions legal in Nevada. A snazzy street rod ready to be re-vinyled with your very own race driver’s livery (if he happens to have driven a Dodge.) It is actually a pretty cool thing and worth at least as much as it brought on Tuesday if only for the fun and in-your-face attitude.

Lot # 321 1965 Ford Falcon 2-Dr. Sedan; S/N 5H01T255061; Wimbledon White/Brigs vinyl, cloth; Cosmetic restoration, 3 condition; Hammered Sold at $7,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $7,700. No Reserve – Pushbutton radio, underdash CD stereo, no wheel covers, narrow whitewalls. – A quick cosmetic redo with decent paint, chrome and interior. It’s amazing that a Ford Falcon has become a ‘collector car’ but nothing better demonstrates the breadth and depth of the hobby. There are better ways to spend $7,700, but few of them will get the same smiles as this Falcon.

Lot # 435 1956 Studebaker Golden Hawk 2-Dr. Hardtop Custom; S/N 6031833; Black/Red, Black leather; Customized restoration, 3+ condition; Hammered Sold at $30,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $33,000. No Reserve – Bucket seats, 4-wheel disc brakes, CD stereo, wheel covers, red line tires, tilt steering column, Grant leather rim steering wheel. – Good paint and chrome, very good interior. Chassis and underbody done, but not to the same standards as the interior. A very presentable and usable car. Reported sold by Russo and Steele in Monterey in August 2012 for $30,250. A tough way to make a buck.

Lot # 615 1918 Cadillac Type 57 Victoria Sedan; S/N 57PP976; Blue, Black fenders/Brown broadcloth; Older restoration, 3+ condition; Hammered Sold at $26,500 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $29,150. No Reserve – White artillery wheels, whitewall tires, Klaxon electric horn, tinted glass windshield visor, dual rear spares, hinged steering wheel. – GM Collection. Fair older restoration. Sound paint and chrome (not nickel). Upholstery is aged and coming loose. Chassis and engine are orderly and tidy but show age. Some attention will make it much better. Cadillac quality and V-8 power for Model T money. The coachwork is pretty coach-ish and not pretty but gives the driver SUV-like visibility over traffic to prepare for using the two-wheel brakes. Needs some work but it is easily addressed and not complicated. When done this will attract plenty of favorable attention. A sound value.

Lot # 707 1977 Oldsmobile Cutlass Cale Yarborough Race Car; S/N BP7964R; White, Red, Blue stripe/Black vinyl; Competition restoration, 3 condition; Hammered Sold at $20,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $22,000. No Reserve – 1977 Oldsmobile Cutlass built by Banjo Matthews for car owner Junior Johnson and driven by Cale Yarborough in his NASCAR Championship year of 1978. Certified by crew chief Travis Carter. – Good paint and chrome. Old upholstery and 5-point belts. A real vintage NASCAR Winston Cup Grand National car. One of a vanishing breed of NASCAR Cup racers actually based on real cars. One look at this old clunker and it’s manifest that their drivers had to be surpassingly brave to run them at 200 mph speeds. Bought for less than a contemporary NASCAR racer, and a very good value in a car of a bygone age.

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One of the first people to report on the collector car market, Rick Carey’s market knowledge is unparalleled and he has one of the largest databases of auction transactions. Carey has a strong background in racing, particularly road racing in International GT endurance competition and an interest and focus upon the collector car market including historical trends and economic analysis. For more from Rick, visit RickCarey.com.